Shah bats for Hindi as nation's language, attracts ire

Sparking off a debate, Home Minister and BJP chief Amit Shah on Saturday battled strongly for Hindi as the " language of the whole country".

In a series of tweets on Hindi Divas, Shah said, "India is a nation of many languages and every language has its own importance. But it is absolutely necessary to have one language for the entire country, which becomes India's identity globally. If there is any one language that can connect the entire nation in a common thread of unity, it is the Hindi language which is spoken the maximum."

Shah's remarks, made on the day which is observed to mark the Constituent Assembly's1949 decision to extend the official language status to Hindi, led to a war of words on social media with different themes under hashtags like #HindiDiwas, #StopHindiImperialism, #StopHindiImposition trending on Twitter. Social media users also took to memes and caricatures to express their views on the issue while those batting for Hindi also uploaded videos of foreigners speaking Hindi to buttress their point.

Reacting sharply, AIMIM Chief Asaduddin Owaisi said, "Hindi isn't every Indian's "mother tongue". Could you try appreciating the diversity & beauty of the many mother tongues that dot this land? Article 29 gives every Indian the right to a distinct language, script & culture." Taking a dig at the BJP, he further said "India's much bigger than Hindi, Hindu, Hindutva."

Shah tweeted, "On the occasion of Hindi Divas, I appeal to all citizens of our country to increase the use of their mother tongue but also use Hindi to make the dream of Bapu (Mahatma Gandhi) and Sardar (Vallabhbhai) Patel of one language come true".

The BJP chief, later spoke at an event to observe 'Hindi Divas', where he spoke strongly about the idea to make Hindi reach every individual and every home in the country as he also unveiled plans to hold the function next year in different parts of the country. Shah claimed that by the time the nation will witness the next general election in 2024, Hindi would have achieved a monumental status.

He also pointed out that when he had first taken the charge of the Home Ministry in the first 10 days, not a single file has come to him with a Hindi noting but "now, 60 per cent files which come to me have Hindi notings."

Ruing that even if a Hindi-medium student is asked to speak for 40 minutes in Hindi, he won't be able to do so, Shah said, "There is so much influence of English on us that we cannot talk in Hindi without its help. School students should be asked to speak in Hindi and whoever uses an English word should be given one mark."

Stressing that efforts will be made to expand Hindi to different parts of the country Shah said the Centre will teach children in Northeast states to read and write Hindi.

He also referred to BJP's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Prime Minister Atal Bihar Vajpayee and late External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj delivering their speeches in the UN General Assembly in Hindi.

Rooting for Hindi, Modi took to Twitter to say that the Hindi language has beautifully incorporated simplicity, spontaneity and elegance that provide meaningfulness to expression.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in a tweet said, "Hindi is a language spoken prominently not only in India but several other countries of the world."

Hindi Divas was first observed in 1953. The issue of Hindi language as a common language has, in the past, seen strong reactions, particularly in the South, which protested according Hindi the prima donna status.

Language has been a sensitive issue in the country ever since independence and India has seen Tamil versus Hindi controversies from time to time, which was also reflected on social media immediately after Shah's remarks appealing to realise the dream of "one language".

A row had earlier erupted months ago when the Draft New Education Policy 2019 came out that referred to the mandatory teaching of Hindi in states where Hindi is not spoken.

The three-language formula enunciated in the National Policy Resolution in 1968 had provided for the study of "Hindi, English and modern Indian language (preferably one of the southern languages) in the Hindi-speaking states and Hindi, English and the regional language in the non-Hindi speaking States."